46pc increase in overdue loans poses fresh risk
The defaulted loans in the industrial sector skyrocketed by 16.24 per cent in the first quarter of the current financial year 2014-15 compared with the corresponding period of the FY14 due to dull business amid political uncertainty. According to Bangladesh Bank data released on Monday, the defaulted industrial loans stood at Tk 18,608.33 crore in July-September of the FY15 against Tk 16,008.46 crore in the same period of the FY14.
The BB data showed that the overdue loans in the industrial sector also increased by 45.85 per cent in the first quarter of the FY15 from that in the same period a financial year ago.
The overdue industrial loans stood at Tk 35,421.36 crore in the first three months of the FY15 against Tk 24,286.02 crore during the corresponding period of the FY14.
The overdue loans will convert into defaulted state soon if the banks do not take immediate initiatives to recover the overdue loans, a BB official told New Age on Monday.
He said the industrial sector was yet to free from the ongoing political uncertainty to operate the smooth business which fuelled up the defaulted loans in the sector.
Besides, a number of banks earlier sanctioned huge amount of loans violating the rules and regulations resulting that the loans entered in to defaulted zone, the official said.
‘A large amount of industrial loans did not go to appropriate target in the first quarter. So, the defaulted and overdue loans in the industrial sector increased hugely in the period,’ he said.
The BB data, however, showed that industrial loan disbursement by the banks and non-bank financial institutions had increased significantly along with the upward trend in the defaulted and overdue loans.
The banks and NBFIs disbursed industrial loan amounting to Tk 52,044.29 crore in July-September of the FY15 against Tk 33,041.50 crore in the same period of the FY14.
The BB official said that it was a positive phenomenon that the industrial loan disbursement had maintained an increased trend in the first quarter, but the trend would not bring any positive impact if the existing defaulting ratio continued in the months to come.
Loan disbursement by four state-owned banks — Sonali, Janata, Agrani and Rupali — increased by 76.62 per cent to Tk 1,270.87 crore in the first quarter of the FY15 from Tk 719.56 crore in the corresponding period of the FY14.
The industrial defaulted loans in the SCBs decreased to Tk 5,114.13 crore in the first quarter of the FY15 against Tk 5,221.23 crore in July-September of the FY14.
Loan disbursement by four state-run specialised banks — Bangladesh Krishi Bank, Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank, Bangladesh Development Bank and BASIC Bank — dropped by 11.57 per cent to Tk 661.51 crore in the first quarter of the FY15 from Tk 748.02 crore in the corresponding period of the FY14.
The industrial defaulted loans in the specialised banks increased by 67.35 per cent in the first quarter of the FY15 as their non-performing loans stood at Tk 3,281.93 crore in the period against Tk 1,961.07 crore in July-September of the FY14.
Industrial loan disbursement by private commercial banks increased by 40.35 in July-September of the FY15 but its defaulted loans also skyrocketed in the period.
The PCBs disbursed industrial loans amounting to Tk 39,496.19 crore in July-September of the FY15 against Tk 28,141.20 crore in the same period of the FY14.
The defaulted loans in the PCBs increased to Tk 8,353.61 crore in July-September of the FY15 from Tk 7,397.82 crore in the same period of the FY14.
The foreign commercial banks in the first quarter of the FY15 posted a huge amount of loan disbursement and a higher defaulted loans from those of the same period of the FY14.
The FCBs disbursed industrial loans amounting to Tk 7,682.03 crore in the first quarter against Tk 1,906.03 crore in the first three months of the FY14 while their defaulted loans increased to Tk 667.53 crore from Tk 438.75 crore.
-With New Age input
